The Top Five Anti-Environment Objectives of ALEC

The American Legislative Exchange Council has at least five "model bills" waiting in the wings to roll back environmental protections for the benefit of polluting industry. ALEC, as you'll recall, is the conservative organization (or "stealth business lobbyist," as the NY Times calls it) that allows corporations to have a direct hand in drafting legislation with state policymakers. That "model" legislation can then be passed onto other states, where it's advocated by other ALEC members.

When major members like Coca Cola, Kraft, and Proctor & Gamble began fleeing the group due to its hand in creating "stand your ground" gun laws, ALEC announced a departure from that legislative arena. It also said it would no longer seek to push voter ID laws. But observers say that it seems to be doubling down in other areas—like the environment. At the behest of its polluting members, ALEC is currently working on model bills that would roll back air pollution protections, shut down renewable energy policies, or otherwise have a deleterious effect on the environment.

Stephen Lacy and Jessica Goad lay out five of ALEC's most potentially destructive anti-environmental objectives over at Climate Progress. Here's the list—for details on each, check out the full report: